Languages of the World/Materials 12: Even

LW/M 12 39 EVEN

Part 3, Appendix

10. Folklore text

10.1. Preliminary notes

The present folklore text was recorded in 1991 from D.M. Osinina, the speaker of the Okhotsk
dialect, presently resident in Topolinoje. (Topolinoje is a community in the Tompo region of
Yakutia). The Okhotsk dialect, spoken in the North of the Khabarovsk region, belongs to Eastern
dialects of Even. It has, however, developed some peculiar features, partly due to the influence of
the genetically closely related Evenki. Phonetics. As in Evenki, the Okhotsk dialect has lost the
distinction between hard and soft high vowels iii, Wii, uiu, uuluu. Under the influence of Evenki the
rhotic /r/ is assimilated by the preceding sonorants f\j and /n/; cf. gen-nid'i < gen-rid'i 'going' in (t:
8), huptudal-la-n < huptuda-l-ra-n 'began to fall behind' in (t: 7 ). Morphology. In the Okhotsk
dialect, as well as in other Eastern dialects, there obtain several imperative forms: apart from the
basic forms enumerated in 3.7.4. there are two other forms - the polite imperative in -ga-f-ge-(cf. bi-
ge-nni 'be!' in (t: 11)) and the remote imperative form in -d'i0a(wa)-/-d'ige(we)- (cf. buga-g-
d'iya-wa-n 'let him have as his homeland' in (t: 10)). On the other hand, the Okhotsk dialect is
similar to Middle- Western dialects in that it has lost the special possessive forms of personal
pronouns: their function within the possessive phrase is performed by the corresponding personal
pronouns; see bit hut-de-mu (lit. I child-my) 'my child' instead of min hut-de-mu (lit. my child-my)
in (t: 15). Syntax. Note here the use of the adverbial riaan 'again' as a coordinating conjunction
('and') in (t: 1), which is generally more characteristic of Middle- Western dialects. In (t: 20) there
obtains topicalization structure, making use of the topic marker bum.

10.2. Text

(t: 1) Tooki n'arcan-ni n'aan nonan hure-1-ni d'ugu-li-ten ukfienek

elk doe-3SG and (s)he child-PL-3SG about-PROL-3PL story

(t: 2) Egd'en boogon'e-du omen n'ar£an-# bi-d'-de-n

big mountain-DAT one elk-cow-NOM be-PROG-NONFUT-3SG

LW/M 12 40 EVEN

(t: 3) Erck n'ar£an-# d'oor hute-lken

this elk-cow-NOM two child-PROPR

(t: 4) Tarak hu-rel-ni omettutic tug-de-1 bi-niker

this child-PL-3SG together be born-PERF PART-PL be-SIM CON:PL

gia hute-#-n aran=ta egd'en,

other child-NOM-3SG a little=CLIT big

gia hute-#-n gia-duki-j kucuke-dmer

other child-NOM-3SG other-ABL-REF POS small-INTENS

(t: 5) Tacin bi-d-deke-n omneken ere-w tooki n'arca-ma-n

like this be-PROGR-COND CON-3SG once this-ACC elk doe-ACC 3SG

neeluki-# em-nid'i hot-te-n

wolf-NOM come-ANT CON chase-NONFUT-3SG

(t: 6) Hookan goru holu-met'-te

very long chase-REC-NONFUT:3PL

(t: 7) Erek tooki 6men-d'i hute-#-n obda-rid'i

this elk one-INST child-NOM-3SG get tired-ANT CON

en'-#-mi huptu-d'a-1-la-n

mother-NOM-REF POS fall back-PROGR-INCH-NONFUT-3SG

(t: 8) Tari£ erek n'ar£an-# 6men boogOn'e-le gen-nid'i

then this elk-cow-NOM one mountain-LOC go-ANT CON
hut-teki-j goon-ni

child-DIR-REF POS say-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 9) "Hii-# erek talgigan nelgig-du-n dik-li"

you-NOM this fallen tree root-DAT-3SG hide-IMP:2SG

(t: 10) "Ereger tooki-# erwo5t-tu-n bo^gCn'e-du

always elk-NOM like this-DAT-3SG mountain-DAT

bugan-d'inawa-n"

have as a land-REM IMP-3SG

(t: 11) "Hii-# tooki tooki-d'i bi-ne-nni"

you-NOM elk elk-INST be-POL IMP-2SG

(t: 12) Erek omen hute-#-n ta-du nelgig-du hiwken-ni,

this one child-NOM that-DAT root-DAT hidc-NONFUT-3SG

taCin eme-p-te-n

like this leave-MED-NONFUT-3SG

(t: 13) Erek n'ar£an-# dmen hut-#-i egd'en elin-dula

this elk-cow-NOM one child-NOM-REF POS big slope-LOC
is-sid'i emen-ni

reach-ANT CON leave-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 14) Tar emen-d'id-niken goon-ni

thus leave-PROGR-SIM CON say-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 15) "Bii hut-£e-mu, hii-# e-du boosag-du

I child-DEMIN-lSG you-NOM this-DAT slope-DAT

eme-p-li"
leave-MED-IMP:2SG

LW/M 12 41 EVEN

(t: 16) "Hii-# buceke oo-li"

you-NOM musk-deer become-IMP:2SG

(t: 17) "Buceke-# erweet-tu-n buga-lkan bi-d'inewe-n"

musk-deer-NOM like this-DAT-3SG land-PROPR be-REM IMP-3SG

godn-ni

say-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 18) Erek n'ar£an-# hure-l-#-bi tacm

this elk-cow-NOM child-PL-NOM-REF POS like this

hirgec-niken emej)-ni

bless-SIM CON leave-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 19) Meenken gaadac n'oon-ni

herself steadily run-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 20) o^e luk i- # bimi ere-w n'egd'eke-w hftt'-te-n

wolf-NOM TOP this-ACC elk-cow-ACC chase-NONFUT:3SG

(t: 21) Tacin nam-na mudan hulu-n

like this sea-LOC edge chase-NONFUT:3SG

(t; 22) Erek n'egd'eke-# nam-na uju-sn-id*i

this elk-cow-NOM sea-LOC swim-MOM-ANT CON

kalim oo-d-ni

whale become-NONFUT-3SG

(t: 23) Tiwomi oterep beji-l-# tooki n'aan buceke

therefore long ago man-PL-NOM elk and musk-deer
d'ugu-li-n ta£imur ukcen-gere-r

about-PROL-3SG like this telI-ITER-NONFUT:3PL

(t: 24) Tooki-lkan buceke-# nogenur-el

elk-PROPR musk-deer-NOM brother and sister-PL

(t: 25) Tooki n'aan buceke korata-#-tan, k6kcin-#-ten,

elk and musk-deer ear-NOM-3PL hoof-NOM-3PL
b66del-#-ten, innata-#-tan urefii-1
legs-NOM-3PL fell-NOM-3PL similar-PL

10.3. Free translation

A legend about an elk-cow and her children

[Once upon a time] on a big mountain ridge there lived an elk-cow. This elk-cow had two child-
ren. Although her children were twins, one of them was somewhat bigger than the other. Once, as
they lived there, a wolf came and began to chase the elk-cow. He was chasing her for a long time.
One of her children, getting tired, began to fall behind. When the elk-cow reached a mountain
ridge, she said to one child: " Hide yourself under the roots of the fallen tree. Let these mountains
be the land of elks. Let you be (stay) the elk forever!" Thus one of her children hid himself under
the root of a fallen tree and stayed there. When the elk-cow reached a big steep slope of another
mountain, she left there her other child, saying : "My child, you stay on this (northern) slope of the
mountain. You become a musk-deer. Let musk-deer own this land forever!" Thus, blessing her
children, the elk-cow left them and ran away. As for the wolf, he kept chasing the elk-cow. He
chased her to the sea shore. The elk-cow began to swim (jumped into) in the sea and finally became
a whale. Therefore people used to tell this about the elk and the musk-deer: they are brother and si-
ster. That's why they are alike. Their ears, hoofs, legs, fur all is alike.

Even

Andrei L. Malchukov

LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD/ Materials 12

Published by LINCOM EUROPA, Miinchen, Newcastle, 1995.

All correspondence concerning LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD /Materials should be
addressed to:

LINCOM EUROPA, P.O. Box 1316, D-85703 Unterschleissheim/Miinchen,
Germany.

All rights reserved, including the rights of translation into any foreign language. No
part of this book may be reproduced in any way without the permission of the
publisher.

Printed in Niirnberg, Germany

Edited by U.J. Luders

Scientific Advisory Board of LANGUAGES OF THE WORLD /Materials (LW/M):

W. Bisang, M. Brenzinger, F. Corriente, R.M.W. Dixon, W.Foley, I. Goddard, N.
Himmelmann, A.E. Kibrik. L. Johanson, A.S. Kaye, M. Mithun, U. Mosel, J.
Owens, G. Sommer, H.E. Wolff.

1995

LINCOM EUROPA

Miinchen - Newcastle

Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme

Malchukov, Andrej L.:

Even / Andrej L. Malchukov. - Miinchen [i.e.]
Unterschleissheim ; Newcastle : LINCOM EUROPA, 1995.

(Languages of the world : Materials ; 12)

ISBN3-929075-13-X

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Printed on chlorine-free paper